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ABSTRACT

The invention describes a dispenser ( 1 ) for automatically dispensing semi-fluid media, in particular toothpaste, from a tube with a mouthpiece, comprising a housing ( 2 ) with an orifice ( 3 ) and having at least one portion measuring unit ( 4 ) for the tube in the interior, a switch ( 6 ), a motor ( 20 ), a drive mechanism ( 5 ) and a control unit ( 7 ), whereby a brush is positioned in the orifice ( 3 ) in order to charge it with semi-fluid medium. In order to transport the brush automatically from the orifice ( 3 ) in the direction of the mouthpiece of the tube, at least one drive mechanism ( 5 ) is provided on a positioning mechanism ( 8 ), in particular a gear ( 33 ) with at least one driver ( 34 ).

Applicant claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 of EUROPEAN PatentApplication No. 06 023 217.0 filed on Nov. 8, 2006.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the invention

The invention relates to a dispenser for automatically dispensing asemi-fluid medium, in particular toothpaste, from a tube with amouthpiece, comprising a housing with an orifice and with a least oneportion measuring unit for the tube in the interior, a switch, a motor,a drive mechanism and a control unit, whereby a brush for charging withsemi-fluid medium is positioned in the orifice, as well as the usethereof.

2. Prior art

There exists a whole range of different objects which are used andemployed by several people in a household on a daily basis. Such objectswhich are used by all persons living in the house several times a dayand are not provided individually for every member of the household arenot always left in a tidy state. For example, one member of the familyfails to screw the cap back on the toothpaste tube causing toothpaste tospill onto the washstand, or another member of the family merely comesalong and puts the cap back on the toothpaste tube without screwing iton and it drops on the floor as soon as the user takes hold of it by thecap and again, toothpaste spills out. Others are more well-intentionedand screw the tube so firmly that it often can not be opened againwithout using some aid. The list goes on.

Furthermore, people who are not in a position to pick up small objects,for example due to an injury or illness, are not able to take care oftheir necessary daily hygiene and body care.

Several aids for measuring portions from tubes are known from the priorart as a means of dealing with the demands of day to day life.

For example, a toothpaste tube squeezer is known from the prior art,which has a base plate defining an elongate chamber containing atoothpaste tube. It also has two longitudinal tracks on both sides ofthe chamber, a transverse ridge which is moved along the longitudinaltracks between two oppositely lying ends of the chamber, and two gearsmounted close to two oppositely lying ends of a shaft and respectivelyengaging in the longitudinal tracks. The toothpaste tube squeezer alsohas two buttons, which are attached to two oppositely lying ends of theshaft so that they can be manually turned, two covers which guide themovement of the gears and a cover which covers the base plate above theelongate chamber and covers. The toothpaste tube squeezer must bemanually operated. As the fingers are turning the buttons, the fingersmay be injured. This design of a toothpaste tube squeezer is also of nouse for persons whose hands are injured or pathologically altered due todiseases.

Another design of tube squeezer is known from DE 298 00 632 U1. Theautomatic tube squeezer comprises a housing, a squeezer unit mounted inthe housing and a motor. A control board is also provided, which is usedto control the squeezer unit. Display lamps are also mounted inend-to-end bores.

Patent specification DE 39 04 143 A1 discloses a device for measuringportions of toothpaste from a toothpaste tube, by means of whichtoothpaste can be easily applied from a toothpaste tube to toothbrushbristles using only one hand. This is achieved using a clamp provided asa means of clamping a flat end piece and suspending the toothpaste tube,and a pair of rollers is provided on a carriage in order to pick up theflatly pressed toothpaste tube in the roller gap and can be displacedalong the toothpaste tube, and the carriage is mounted on a guide anddrive mechanism incorporating a drive. A control unit is also provided,which has a sensor for detecting a toothbrush at the mouthpiece andswitching on the drive for the outward travel, a timer for halting andoutward travel after a period of time and a switching element forswitching the drive back on so as to effect a return travel. The sensorsets the drive in motion as the toothbrush bristles approach themouthpiece so that toothpaste is squeezed out of the mouthpiece onto thetoothbrush bristles.

The disadvantage of the devices for measuring portions of toothpastefrom a toothpaste tube known from the prior art is that the toothbrushis placed by the user more or less directly underneath the mouthpiece ofthe toothpaste tube and has to be moved away again or the toothbrush ismoved only far enough to obtain a portion of toothpaste on the bristles.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, the objective of this invention is to automate thedispensing of a semi-fluid medium from a dispenser as far as possible.

This objective is achieved by the invention on the basis of a dispenser,and in order to transport the brush automatically from the orifice inthe direction of the mouthpiece of the tube on a positioning mechanism,at least one drive mechanism is provided, in particular a gear, with atleast one driver. The advantage of this approach is that the brushmerely has to be laid down and is automatically transported from theorifice to the mouthpiece of the tube and semi-fluid medium dispensedand the user is therefore not required to pay attention to positioningthe brush correctly, whereas otherwise, semi-fluid medium could bepositioned next to the brush button, thus requiring the entire dispensermechanism to be carefully cleaned.

The dispenser has a housing, and the housing has a rear wall, side wallsarticulatingly connected to the rear wall, a base plate and a coverplate, as a result of which as smooth a surface as possible can beobtained, i.e. with few projections, so that little dust can bedeposited and the design of the surface is such that it can be easilycleaned. Furthermore, the mechanisms are disposed in the housing and areprotected by the housing.

The drive mechanism for transporting the brush may comprise severalgears, and at least one of them is able to assume the function oftransmitting force accordingly from another component of the dispenser,for example, and this force may be used to transport the brush.

In order to establish an interaction between the positioning mechanismand the gear, three drivers may be provided on the gear disposed at anangle of 120° with respect to one another so that rotating the gearcauses the positioning mechanism to move.

In another embodiment, the drive mechanism is height-adjustable orelectrically height-adjustable, thereby making it easy to adapt to thesize or type of respective brush used.

A freewheel may also be provided, thereby enabling the portion measuringmechanism/portion measuring unit to be uncoupled. The freewheel isneeded when the portion measuring roller is moved upwards in order tochange the tube.

The drive mechanism also has at least one other gear, and one of theother gears assumes the function of increasing the ratio of a force,transmitted in particular from a spindle to the drive of the portionmeasuring roller of the portion measuring unit, thereby making optimumuse of the energy applied. It has also proved to be of advantage if themovements of the individual elements of the dispenser, such as thepositioning mechanism and the portion measuring roller of the portionmeasuring unit, are coordinated and adapted to one another.

In one embodiment, the positioning mechanism has at least one brush box,a guide means, in particular a track, for moving the brush box andoptionally a return element, in particular a spring, for re-positioningthe brush in the direction of the orifice, as a result of which thebrush can be exactly positioned relative to the mouthpiece of the tubeand the positioning mechanism can easily be moved in the directiontowards and in the direction away from the mouthpiece, on the one hand,and the brush is released from the dispenser again, on the other hand.

A projection is also provided on the positioning mechanism, inparticular on the brush box, to provide an interaction with the driver,so that the gear pushes the toothbrush box forward via the driverinteracting with the projection, thereby enabling the semi-fluid mediumto be dispensed form the mouthpiece of the tube onto the bristles of thebrush.

On its top face, the brush box has a cut-out to enable the semi-fluidmedium to be forced out onto the brush head. The top face may also bedisposed at a distance from the side walls, so that the semi-fluidmedium is applied without touching the brush box, which would otherwisemake it necessary to remove it from the brush box with the brush or aspatula.

In one embodiment of the invention, the brush box may have a bolt on itstransverse face directed towards the rear wall of the dispenser, therebyenabling the switch for operating the dispenser to be activated.

The brush box is also disposed on guide means on the base plate, therebyguaranteeing an exact positioning of the brush box on the one hand,because the base plate creates a certain degree of stability, and on theother hand making it possible to use elements that are easy tomanufacture and inexpensive due to the guide means, in particular in theform of tracks.

The portion measuring unit comprises at least one spindle, in particulara threaded spindle, a portion measuring roller, a tube retaining wall, aclamp fitting and a fixing element, thereby imparting the stabilityneeded to permit automatic and complete emptying of the tube.

In one embodiment, the portion measuring roller is retained so that itcan move on a threaded spindle so that the portion measuring roller canbe moved along the tube and the tube pressed against the tube retainingwall causing semi-fluid medium to be squeezed out of the mouthpiece ofthe tube.

The portion measuring roller can be placed in idle mode and alsorelieved of pressure, thereby preventing the semi-fluid medium fromsubsequently spilling out of the tube once the portion measuring rolleris stationary.

In the operating mode, the tube of the dispenser is disposed between thetube retaining wall and the portion measuring roller, and pressure isapplied to the tube due to the movement of the portion measuring rollerand the tube retaining wall prevents it from flexing back out so thatthe semi-fluid medium is forced to move out through the mouthpiece wherethe pressure is eased at a possible dispensing point.

A clamp fitting is also provided on the tube retaining wall for holdingthe tube at its end region lying opposite the mouthpiece, therebypreventing the tube from slipping in the dispenser when a force isapplied to the tube by the portion measuring roller.

The fixing element for the tube and optionally an adapter for differentmouthpieces of the tube is provided on the rear wall of the housing,thereby ensuring that the mouthpiece of the tube is exactly positioned,even when force is being applied to it.

In one embodiment of the adapter, a ball valve is provided, therebyenabling the semi-fluid medium to be selectively controlled as it isdispensed from the tube and preventing the brush box or positioningmechanism and hence the entire dispenser from becoming messy due tomedium spilling out unintentionally.

At least one cog belt pulley and optionally a cog belt may be disposedin or on the cover plate, in which case a commercially availablemechanical means may be used for transmitting force.

The at least one cog belt pulley interacts with the at least one spindleof the portion measuring unit and another cog belt pulley interacts withthe motor, thereby enabling force to be transmitted in the mannerdescribed above.

At least one cover is provided for the base and/or cover plate, in whichcase the cog belt pulley and the cog belt are protected inside thedispenser.

At least one orifice may be provided in the cover plate and/or its coverfor accommodating at least one function control lamp, so that a quickglance will suffice to ascertain what functions are available, whetherthe dispenser is ready for operation, whether cleaning is necessary orwhether the tube needs to be replaced, etc.

The electronic control unit is disposed on the rear wall and there is aconnection to the motor of the at least one function control lamp andthe at least one switch so that all the units of the dispenser can beelectronically driven and coordinated via the control unit.

In an alternative embodiment, a spring element is disposed along thevertical axis of the drive mechanism, thereby resulting in a dispensercapable of accommodating different embodiments of brushes, such aselectric or mechanical toothbrushes, for example.

In this embodiment, a fork element is also provided in the region of thedrive mechanism, so that merely by mechanically changing the position ofparts of the drive mechanism, the program needed for the respectivebrush can be activated in order to dispense the semi-fluid medium ontothe brush or a spatula.

The fork element is retained by means of a retaining mechanism, inparticular by means of a bearing, thereby allowing the gear to move intothe end position, where it can be secured.

A switch is also provided as a means of activating a fork element,thereby facilitating activation of the switching mode to differentrespective brushes.

It has proved to be of advantage if the dispenser is used for dispensingtoothpaste or shoe polish.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will be explained in more detail below with reference toexamples of embodiments schematically illustrated in the appendeddrawings. Of these:

FIG. 1 shows an internal view of the dispenser proposed by theinvention;

FIG. 2 is an exploded diagram of the region of the cover plate of thedispenser proposed by the invention;

FIG. 3 is an exploded diagram of the middle and bottom regions of thedispenser proposed by the invention;

FIG. 4 is a detailed view of the drive mechanism of the dispenserproposed by the invention;

FIG. 5 shows a section in the horizontal direction through the region ofthe base plate of the dispenser proposed by the invention;

FIG. 6 shows an alternative embodiment of the bottom region of thedispenser proposed by the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Firstly, it should be pointed out that the same parts described in thedifferent embodiments are denoted by the same reference numbers and thesame component names and the disclosures made throughout the descriptioncan be transposed in terms of meaning to same parts bearing the samereference numbers or same component names. Furthermore, the positionschosen for the purposes of the description, such as top, bottom, side,etc, relate to the drawing specifically being described and can betransposed in terms of meaning to a new position when another positionis being described. Individual features or combinations of features fromthe different embodiments illustrated and described may be construed asindependent inventive solutions or solutions proposed by the inventionin their own right.

All the figures relating to ranges of values in the description shouldbe construed as meaning that they include any and all part-ranges, inwhich case, for example, the range of 1 to 10 should be understood asincluding all part-ranges starting from the lower limit of 1 to theupper limit of 10, i.e. all part-ranges starting with a lower limit of 1or more and ending with an upper limit of 10 or less, e.g. 1 to 1.7, or3.2 to 8.1 or 5.5 to 10.

This invention relates to a dispenser for automatically dispensingsemi-fluid media. Semi-fluid might include, for example, a toothpaste,tooth cream, shoe cream, shoe paste, pasty foodstuffs, for examplepeanut butter, etc.

FIG. 1 is a simplified diagram of a dispenser 1 of the type proposed bythe invention. The dispenser 1 has a housing 2 with an orifice 3, whichconstitutes the cladding of the innards of the dispenser 1. The brush ora spatula for receiving the semi-fluid medium can be pushed through theorifice 3. Disposed in the interior of the housing 2 is the portionmeasuring unit 4, a drive mechanism 5, a switch 6 and an electroniccontrol unit 7. Also illustrated is the positioning mechanism 8, whichis made up of several parts.

In addition to the orifice 3, the housing 2 comprises a rear wall 9, aleft-hand side wall 10 and a right-hand side wall 11, which arearticulatingly attached to the rear wall 9. Disposed in the top region12 is a cover plate 13 and in the bottom region 14 a base plate 15. Thebase plate 15 secures the portion measuring mechanism.

The cover plate 13 and the base plate 15 may each be provided with acover plate 16, 17.

FIG. 2 is an exploded diagram showing the top region 12 of the dispenser1, in particular the cover plate 13 with the cover plate 16.

Disposed in or on the cover plate 13 are several cog belt pulleys 18which are connected via a cog belt 19. As illustrated in FIG. 2, threecog belt pulleys 18 may be provided, which are connected via the cogbelt 19. In alternative embodiments, however, it would also be possibleto provide only two cog belt pulleys 18 or more than three cog beltpulleys 18. One of the cog belt pulleys 18 is connected to a motor 20which, as illustrated in FIG. 2, may be disposed underneath the coverplate 13. The motor 20 drives one of the cog belt pulleys 18. The energyis transmitted via the cog belt 19 to the other cog belt pulleys 18,thereby driving other elements, such as parts of the drive mechanism 5,for example.

Orifices 21 are provided in the cover plate 13 or cover 16, in whichfunction control lamps 22 may be disposed, for example. For example, acontrol lamp 22 may be activated when the portion measuring unit 4 hasreached the bottom end position. This end position can only be reachedwhen the tube is empty. Components of the portion measuring unit 4 thenmove back up again.

Another function control lamp 22 may be activated when the top endposition is reached, thereby indicating that the tube is empty and theportion measuring unit 4 is ready to be filled with a new tube.

Yet another function control lamp 22 is illuminated during thepositioning operation.

Once the tube has been replaced, it may be preferable if theoperation-ready status is restored by operating the portion measuringmechanism once.

Naturally, it would also be possible to provide a function control lamp22 which generally indicates that the dispenser 1 is ready foroperation.

FIG. 2 also illustrates parts of the portion measuring unit 4. In theembodiment illustrated, the portion measuring unit 4 comprises twospindles 23 and a portion measuring roller 24. The spindles 23 arepreferably provided in the form of threaded spindles and the portionmeasuring roller 24 can be moved along the spindles 23 so that the tubeis compressed during the positioning operation. The portion measuringroller 24 permits an automatic forward movement followed by a relief ofthe pressure in order to prevent the semi-fluid medium from beingsubsequently squeezed out of the tube.

FIG. 3 is an exploded diagram specifically illustrating the positioningmechanism 8. The positioning mechanism 8 comprises at least one brushbox 25, guide means 26, in particular tracks for guiding the brush box25, and optionally a return element 27, in particular a spring, forre-positioning the brush box 25 in the direction of the orifice 3 of thehousing 2.

As illustrated in FIG. 3, a projection 28 is provided on the brush box25, which interacts with components of the drive mechanism 5. On its topface 44, the brush box 25 has a cut-out 43 so that the semi-fluid mediumis able to pass from the tube directly onto the brush head or thespatula. The cut-out 43 is preferably of a longer dimension in itslongitudinal extension than it its in its transverse extension. The topface 44 of the brush box 25 may also be disposed at a distance apartfrom the side walls 45 so that the semi-fluid medium pressed out of thetube onto the brush head or spatula does not touch the brush box 25.

In one embodiment of the invention, the brush box 25 may have a bolt 46or pin in its transverse face directed towards the rear wall 9 of thedispenser 1. The bolt 46 may activate operation of the switch 6,optionally via a spring element, by pushing the brush into the brush box25.

The guide means 26 are disposed on the base plate 15. The brush box 25is moved in the guide means 26.

Also disposed on the rear wall 9 is a fixing element 29 for themouthpiece of the tube. The purpose of the fixing element 29 is toaccommodate the mouthpiece of the tube containing the semi-fluid medium.Different fixing elements 29 may be provided for different tubes of thesemi-fluid medium.

An adapter 30 may also be provided on the brush box 25 for differentmouthpieces of tubes. The adapter 30 interacts with the fixing element29 in order to close the tube.

In FIG. 3, the tube retaining wall 31 is also illustrated with a clampfitting 32. The tube retaining wall 31 acts as a pressing surface forthe tube. The clamp fitting 32 is disposed on the tube retaining walland is used to hold the tube at its end region lying opposite themouthpiece. In operating mode, the tube is disposed between andco-operates with the tube retaining wall 31 and the portion measuringroller 24.

FIG. 4 is a detailed view illustrating the drive mechanism 5. The drivemechanism 5 comprises several gears 33 and at least one driver 34 isprovided on one gear 33. In the embodiment illustrated, the gear 33 isprovided with three drivers 34 disposed at an angle of approximately120°.

In addition to the gear 33 with the driver 34, the drive mechanism 5also has at least one other gear 35, the purpose of which is to increasethe ratio of force transmitted by the spindle 36 to the portionmeasuring unit 4. The drive mechanism 5 also has a freewheel 37, whichis needed when the portion measuring roller 24 is moved upwards in orderto change the tube. This enables the portion measuring mechanism to beuncoupled.

The drive mechanism 5 may be height-adjustable design and in particularmay be electrically height-adjustable.

FIG. 4 also illustrates the switch 6 which is operated in order toactivate the dispenser 1 when the brush is guided to the stop in thebrush box 25, thereby initiating the positioning operation.

FIG. 5 illustrates a section through the dispenser 1 proposed by theinvention in the region of the orifice 3. Disposed on the base plate 15are the guide means 26 on which the brush box 25 is moved. When a brushis placed in the brush box 25 and guided as far as the stop, the switch6 is activated, thereby activating the entire positioning operation. Dueto the projection 28 of the brush box 25 interacting with the driver 34of the gear 33, the gear 33 is moved and once the gear 33 with driver 34has been displaced by a one third rotation, the projection 28 of thebrush box 25 slips past the driver 34. The return element 27 pulls thebrush box 25 back into the initial position.

FIG. 5 illustrates how the articulated connection of the side walls 10,11 to the rear wall 9 can be achieved by means of hinge joints 38.

FIG. 6 illustrates an alternative embodiment of the dispenser 1 and thisalternative embodiment is an improved version making allowance fordifferent brushes, such as electrically or mechanically operated brushesfor example. This being the case, a spring element 39 is disposed alongthe vertical axis of the gear 33 of the drive mechanism 5. The purposeof the spring element 39 is to secure the gear 33, 35 in the respectiveposition depending on whether mechanical or electric brushes are used,in particular r toothbrushes.

Also illustrated is a fork element 40, which moves the gear 33, 35 intothe end position, where it secures it. A bearing 41 is provided as ameans of mounting the fork element 40. A switch 42 may also activate thepositioning operation for electric toothbrushes.

A brief description will be given below, explaining how the dispenser 1operates.

A brush is pushed into the orifice 3 in the brush box 25 as far as therear stop. There, the positioning operation is initiated by means of theswitch 6. In an alternative embodiment, the switch 6 may also betriggered by means of the bolt 46 disposed in the transverse face of thebrush box 25 directed towards the rear wall 9 of the dispenser 1. Viathe control unit 7, the switch 6 activates the motor 20, which drivesthe spindles 23 via the cog belt 19 and the cog belt pulleys 18. Byrotating the spindles 23, the portion measuring roller 24 is moveddownwards. The tube, which lies between the portion measuring roller 24and the tube retaining wall 31, is now compressed. Also via the spindles23 and via the gear 35, a rotating motion is transmitted to the gear 33with the driver 34. The gear 33 with the driver 34 pushes the brush box25 forwards. After a one-third rotation of the gear 33 with the driver34, the projection 28 of the brush box 25 slips past the driver 34. Thereturn element 27 pulls the brush box 25 back into the initial position.

The alternative embodiment operates in the same way as that describedabove. However, there is an option whereby the fork element 40 can beswitched in order to activate the positioning operation for electrictoothbrushes. Accordingly, the gear 33 is pushed out of the driveconnection. This simultaneously causes the switch 42 to be switched.When the switch 42 is activated the appropriate portion measuringprogram is now activated when an electric toothbrush is inserted throughthe orifice 3. The portion measuring mode active at any one time,whether for mechanical or electric toothbrushes, is indicated externallyby means of function control lamps 22, such as LEDs for example.

The embodiments illustrated as examples represent possible designvariants of the dispenser 1 and it should be pointed out at this stagethat the invention is not specifically limited to the design variantsspecifically illustrated, and instead the individual design variants maybe used in different combinations with one another and these possiblevariations lie within the reach of the person skilled in this technicalfield given the disclosed technical teaching. Accordingly, allconceivable design variants which can be obtained by combiningindividual details of the design variants described and illustrated arepossible and fall within the scope of the invention.

FIG. 6 illustrates another embodiment of the dispenser 1, which may beconstrued as an embodiment in its own right. The same reference numbersand component names are used to denote parts which are the same as thoseillustrated in the preceding FIGS. 1 to 5. In order to avoid unnecessaryrepetition, reference may be made to the detailed description given inconnection with these drawings.

For the sake of good order, finally, it should be pointed out that, inorder to provide a clearer understanding of the structure of thedispenser 1, it and its constituent parts are illustrated to a certainextent out of scale and/or on an enlarged scale and/or on a reducedscale.

The objective underlying the independent inventive solutions may befound in the description.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMBERS

1 Dispenser

2 Housing

3 Orifice

4 Poriton measuring unit

5 Drive mechanism

6 Switch

7 Control unit

8 Positioning mechanism

9 Rear wall

10 Side wall

11 Side wall

12 Region

13 Cover plate

14 Region

15 Base plate

16 Cover plate

17 Cover plate

18 Cog belt pulley

19 Cog belt

20 Motor

21 Orifice

22 Control lamp

23 Spindle

24 Portion measuring roller

25 Brush bol

26 Guide means

27 Return element

28 Projection

29 Fixing element

30 Adapter

31 Tube retaining wall

32 Clamp fitting

33 Gear

34 Driver

35 Gear

36 Spindle

27 Freewheel

28 Hinge

39 Spring element

40 Fork element

41 Bearing

42 Switch

43 Cut-out

44 Top face

45 Side wall

46 Bolt

1. Dispenser for automatically dispensing semi-fluid media, inparticular toothpaste, from a tube with a mouthpiece, comprising ahousing with an orifice and at least one portion measuring unit for thetube in the interior, a switch, a motor, a drive mechanism and a controlunit, whereby a brush is positioned in the orifice in order to charge itwith semi-fluid medium, wherein, in order to transport the brushautomatically from the orifice in the direction of the mouthpiece of thetube, at least one drive mechanism is provided on a positioningmechanism, in particular a gear with at least one driver.
 2. Dispenseraccording to claim 1, wherein the housing comprises a rear wall, sidewalls articulatingly attached to the rear wall, a base plate and a coverplate.
 3. Dispenser according to claim 1, wherein the drive mechanismcomprises several gears.
 4. Dispenser according to claim 1, whereinthree drivers are provided on the gear disposed at an angle ofapproximately 120°.
 5. Dispenser according to claim 1, wherein the drivemechanism is height-adjustable, in particular electricallyheight-adjustable.
 6. Dispenser according to claim 1, wherein afreewheel is provided.
 7. Dispenser according to claim 1, wherein thedrive mechanism has at least one other gear and one of the other gearsassumes the function of increasing the ratio of a force which istransmitted in particular by a spindle to the portion measuring unit. 8.Dispenser according to claim 1, wherein the positioning mechanismcomprises at least one brush box, a guide means, in particular tracks,for moving the brush box, and optionally a return element, in particulara spring, for re-positioning the brush in the direction of the orifice.9. Dispenser according to claim 1, wherein a projection is provided onthe positioning mechanism, in particular the brush box, which interactswith the driver.
 10. Dispenser according to claim 1, wherein, on its topface, the brush box has a cut-out and the top face is optionallydisposed at a distance from the side walls.
 11. Dispenser according toclaim 1, wherein, on its transverse face directed towards the rear wall,the brush box has a bolt, optionally a spring-biased bolt.
 12. Dispenseraccording to claim 1, wherein the brush box is disposed on guide meanson the base plate.
 13. Dispenser according to claim 1, wherein theportion measuring unit comprises at least one spindle, in particular athreaded spindle, a portion measuring roller, a tube retaining wall, aclamp fitting and a fixing element.
 14. Dispenser according to claim 1,wherein the portion measuring roller is mounted so that it can bedisplaced on the spindle and can be displaced and then optionallyrelieved of pressure.
 15. Dispenser according to claim 1, wherein thetube is disposed between the tube retaining wall and the portionmeasuring roller when the dispenser is in operating mode.
 16. Dispenseraccording to claim 1, wherein the clamp fitting on the tube retainingwall for retaining the tube is disposed at its end region lying oppositethe mouthpiece.
 17. Dispenser according to claim 1, wherein the fixingelement for the tube and optionally an adapter for different mouthpiecesof the tube are disposed on the rear wall of the housing.
 18. Dispenseraccording to claim 17, wherein a ball valve is provided in the adapter.19. Dispenser according to claim 1, wherein at least one cog belt pulleyand optionally a cog belt is disposed in/on the cover plate. 20.Dispenser according to claim 1, wherein the at least one cog belt pulleyinteracts with the at least one spindle of the portion measuring unit.21. Dispenser according to claim 1, wherein at least one orifice isprovided in the cover plate and/or its cover for accommodating at leastone function control lamp.
 22. Dispenser according to claim 1, whereinthe electronic control unit is disposed on the rear wall and has aconnection to the motor, the at least one function control lamp and theat least one switch.
 23. Dispenser according to claim 1, wherein aspring element is disposed in the vertical direction with respect to thedrive mechanism.
 24. Dispenser according to claim 1, wherein a forkelement is provided in the region of the drive mechanism and is retainedby means of a retaining mechanism, in particular by means of a bearing,and a switch is provided as a means of activating the fork element. 25.Use of the dispenser according to claim 1 for dispensing toothpaste orshoe paste.